About Us

The Early Childhood Council of Region IV

We are here to help educators, parents, children and families in need. We serve the communities of Essex, Deep River, and Chester, Connecticut.  Our mission is to heighten awareness among the people of our community about the educational needs facing preschool children from three to five years old.

Our Mission

We serve the communities of Essex, Deep River, and Chester, Connecticut to heighten awareness of the educational needs facing three, four, and five-year-old children. We are dedicated to providing resources to parents and to the early childhood educators of Connecticut’s public school district Region IV, ensuring seamless communication among caregivers.

Contact us here.


Our History

A brown bag lunch on a playground picnic table launched the Early Childhood Council back in the 1980’s. The preschool directors from Schoolmates, CDE, Essex Preschool and Chester Child Center gathered at The Children’s House because they all understood the importance of an early childhood experience. They also knew that many local children would not receive this benefit because their parents could not afford to enroll them in a local program. A wonderful sharing of ideas began. Instead of competition, a strong and lasting bond was created within this body of Early Childhood Professionals.


Meetings

Meetings of the council are open to the public. Scheduled dates are announced on our Facebook page.





Goals of the Early Childhood Council
  • To encourage the involvement of any community members who have an interest in children from three to five years of age.
  • To develop plans and identify services that assess, address, and meet the important needs of preschool age children.
  • To promote quality preschool education for every child in Chester, Deep River, and Essex.
  • To disseminate information to the public regarding the physical, emotional and educational needs of children ages three to five.
  • To distribute necessary funds to qualified families from the Preschool Scholarship Fund in order to enhance a child’s formative years by providing a one year preschool experience to a growing number of four-year-old children in the district.
  • To support communication and collaboration between the elementary schools of Connecticut School District IV to help facilitate successful transitions for children making the exciting emotional and academic leap from preschool to kindergarten.







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